1st Ld-Writhru: Officials probing China's forced labor scandal punished for playing cards

1st Ld-Writhru: Officials probing China's forced labor scandalpunished for playing cards

TAIYUAN, July 9 (Xinhua) -- Five officials in Hongtong County innorth China's Shanxi Province, the center of China's forced laborscandal, have been punished for playing cards when they should havebeen investigating the crimes.

Ma Heping, deputy secretary of the county disciplinary commissionof the Communist Party of China (CPC), was given a warning, while RenQinglin, director of the commission's investigation department,received a "serious warning", the Linfen city CPC disciplinarycommission said.

Three other officials -- Zhang Xiuying, Liu Baohu and Guo Sen --were ordered to "make serious self-criticisms".

On June 19, Ren and the other three officials were caught byjournalists reporting on the brick kiln forced labor scandal. Theofficials were playing cards in the office when they should have beeninvestigating the scandal, a Hunan-based newspaper said.

Ren was quoted by the newspaper as saying, "We worked until 2:00a.m. and we are tired. Today is the dragon-boat festival, so we areplaying cards to relax a bit."

The story of the card games drew harsh public criticism.

A circular issued by the provincial disciplinary commission saidthe officials had undermined public confidence and all disciplinaryofficials in the province were required to learn from the case.

The use of forced laborers hit the headlines after more than 400parents in central China's Henan Province posted a call-for-helpletter on the internet last month, saying their missing children hadbeen sold to small brick kilns in Shanxi and Henan as forcedlaborers.

By June 22, 359 people, including 12 children, had been rescuedfrom illegal brick kilns in Shanxi and police had arrested 38 people.Police in Henan rescued 217 people, including 29 children, andarrested 120 people in a four-day crackdown, in which, more than35,000 police checked 7,500 kilns.

The forced labor scandal sparked a nationwide outcry and drew anapology from the Shanxi provincial governor, Yu Youjun, who promisedto do everything in his power to tackle the issue.

The central government ordered a thorough investigation of thescandal and Premier Wen Jiabao pledged that lawbreakers who illegallyemploy children, force people to work or maliciously injure workerswill be severely punished.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC),China's top legislature, on June 29 adopted the labor contract lawfollowing the exposure of forced labor scandals, which is expected tohelp protect workers' legal rights by making written contractsobligatory.

Under the new law, if employers don't sign written contracts withtheir employees within a year after employees begin working, thenthey are considered to have signed a permanent labor contract.

"Employers should not force employees to work overtime andemployees can terminate the contract without fulfilling the noticeperiod if they are forced to work by violence, threat or restrictionof personal freedom," the law reads.

The law will come into effect on Jan. 1, 2008.

Last Wednesday, five people went on trial in the IntermediatePeople's Court of Linfen City on charges connected to the scandal.The defendants included kiln boss Wang Bingbing, foreman Heng Tinghanand employees Zhao Yanbing, Heng Mingyang and Liu Dongsheng.

The People's Procuratorate of Linfen City said defendants HengTinghan, Zhao Yanbing and Liu Dongsheng had been charged with illegaldetention and murder, while defendants Heng Mingyang, son of HengTinghan, and Wang Bingbing had to face illegal detention charges.

The results of the trial will be announced at a later date.